Former S. Sudan army general calls for popular uprising

June 13, 2014 (JUBA) – A general who recently defected from South Sudan army to the opposition has called for popular uprising against the Juba government, which he claimed was struggling to survive and remain in power by relying on ethnic allies.

Major General Dau Aturjong Nyuol speaking in a rally declaring his candidature for Northern Bahr el Ghazal State Governor (File/ST)

Speaking exclusively to Sudan Tribune on Friday, Gen. Dau Aturjong said it was time for South Sudanese to openly come out and make bold decisions against president Salva Kiir’s regime.

The officer announced his switch to the opposition led by former vice-president Riek Machar in Nairobi, Kenya last month.

“There is no any other time for change. Our country has entered a critical stage where we must accept the responsibility and take bold decision to bring the change needed by our people. The regime of Salva Kiir and his friends is on its last knee and should not be assisted to remain in power anymore,” Aturjong said by phone.

“It has demonstrated that they do not care about the plights of our people, even the soldiers they are using to defend their interests are starving in their trenches,” he added.

The former division commander hailing from South Sudan’s Northern Bahr el Ghazal state urged all members of his community currently serving in the pro-government army to join rebellion. He also extended similar messages to the other communities in the new nation.

“I would like our people to know that South Sudan is not an individual property for them to continue to keep quiet and expect a change which does not come by itself. It requires sacrifices. I have done that several times. Most of our people know I am a field commander,” the army defector said.

He further explained that he opted to join rebellion in order to fight the “enemy” who allegedly mismanaged the country’s affair, despite the freedom gained after years of civil war.

“I call upon all people in the regime and in the other institutions, especially those who are in the army to defect from this government,” said Aturjong.

NATIONAL DISASTER

According to the general, it was high time the civil population launched general strikes through civil disobedience, urging soldiers from Northern Bahr el Ghazal to abandon their deployment areas.

“There is no reason for them to die in front lines while their own family members, particularly their wives and children are dying of hunger. It is better the return to their homes so that they go and begin to look after their own families instead of all dying,” the general told Sudan Tribune.

“The wives and children die at homes because of hunger and their husbands die in front line in defend of self-interest group is a double national disaster and unacceptable,” he added.

The general also appealed to pro-government fighters in Upper Nile region to join the opposition, vowing to facilitate their movement and further ensure they were well taken care of.

“Leaving the government is another way of fighting,” the army general said.

Some key opposition figures have also agitated for mass civil disobedience against the Juba regime.

(ST)

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14 June 2014 07:55, by Hardlinner

Dau Aturjong, should know that we south Sudanese know the plot against us between the government and the opposition. in fact neither the government nor the opposition could realise the aspiration of general population. your called for popular uprise serve you only not us the civilians. you are all corrupt and serve no purpose but yourself.

A source in the EU Brussels for (the next day newspaper) stated yesterday (Friday), the direction for the issuance of an international resolution that would put the proceeds of oil South Sudan under international control, and pointed out that the European Union reached an agreement with the United States and Norway to issue a decision in the coming days. Some much for friends! They took you oil !!

Aturjong Dau, we know from history you are a true nationalist it is because you are not real Dinka. Your father from equatoria Osiliha was a great fighter in Anya nya though your mother is Dinka, you took the heart of your father from eastern equatoria. Yes, the only way to bring the government down is to pour lots of blood. This murderous regime cannot be change through dialogue as it has fail.

Ah, so the only reason that Dau Aturjong Nyuol is apparently a ’true nationalist’ is because he’s apparently not a ’true Dinka’!? This kind of ’thinking’ and rhetoric will get you absolutely nowhere. There’s no evidence that Aturjong Nyuol is not a full-blooded Dinka.

*Sigh* So Nimeiry’s decision to split ’the South’ [in contravention of the Addis Ababa peace Agreement] was motivated by his apparent desire to prevent an internecine South on South civil war!? Nimeiry’s motivations for dividing ’the South’ was to undermine its political strength and denude it of powers it had under the Addis Ababa Agreement.

And since you’re trying to put a benign spin on Nimeiri’s absolute disregard for each and every term of the Addis Ababa Peace Agreement... What benign reason was behind his decision to annex fertile and mineral rich Southern territories to the North!? What perfectly innocent reason was behind his decision to cancel the agreed upon Referendums on Abyei and Chali!?

Nimeiri’s overconfidence and the regime’s intensifying economic difficulties led him to seek direct control over the newly discovered oil resources in the south… In 1980, he announced plans to redraw the borders between southern and northern provinces. (Civil War and Failed Efforts for Peace in the Sudan - Taisier Ali and Robert O. Matthews)

In 1980, President Nimeiri instructed his Attorney General Hassan el Turabi to redraw Sudan’s map for administrative purposes. The Attorney General executed this task and presented a “new” map to the Parliament that year. The new map carved away oil areas such as Heglig and Bentiu from the South. (Integration and Fragmentation of the Sudan: An African Renaissance, February 21, 2011)

Northern interests, sense of exceptionalism, myopic, single-minded greed and self-aggrandizement were the reasons behind Nimeiry’s decision to impose Sharia, ignore the agreed upon quantitative one-to-one military ratio, cancel the agreed upon Referendums on Abyei and Chali, and his attempts to redraw the border by annexing fertile and mineral rich Southern territories to the North.

I’m going to take your claims with a grain of salt until you provide us with evidence that the EU and the United States have agreed to place remittance from South Sudan’s oil, under ’international’ management. I don’t think any country or Union has the right to do that.

President Kiir work hard during liberation of this country; we all have video footages and record to proved it. Now; what were the oppositions and Riek Machar doing in Khartoum during liberation of South Sudan? He was sending his army to South to killed civilians and now his think he can take President Kiir Job!>>>>>

>>>>>I would be very surprise if president Kiir allows it to happen! Making noises in the Nairobi and Addis Ababa hotels are the only places they will cry until they all come back to begged for amnesty from president Kiir.

Removing Kirr does not need a single wastage of a bullet, all people need to do is demonstrate, stage mass protests, sit in strikes! What will he do? Kill the unarmed protesters? I bet he won’t, and besides, citizens have the right to protest. All he has to do is stand on the way of federalism, and you will see the result...mass demonstrations! We are tired of incompetence, corruption & domination

Federalism is the other tactical war where majority of Dinka will rebellion because this nation is being confuse by so many politician and no nation where body is a politician.we still with all arrangement not in a place,no stability in the country otherwise the country will be like Somalia and let all taste the sweetness this system

Force 1, I would rather prefer you provide videos for 9yrs accomplishment of Kiir in power and things that qualify him to go on ruling the nation. We already know the undisputed fact that he fought the liberation war and we thank him for that. South Sudanese are now desperately looking for a leader not a fighter.

Costa
I agree with some of your points but keep in mind; leaders could be fighters as well. My point is; leaders come and go or replace by others. No leader stays forever in power; if you don’t respect the current leaders despite differences we have; how can you expect everybody to respect the next leader?

you defected because of losing a position of gubernatorial seat.you fail to sustain your life from other source of life and you are destroying the image of bahr zahal because of your greedy for position. do not beg us to beat drum for your success we know when we can do what to who and why. we forget you but we forgive you because you are legitimate child of Bahr Zaghal.you came with your mother.

Force 1,the idea that Kiir fought hard for this nation and that he deserves ruling us even when he clearly failed us fruits of why war was fought, is an absolute rubbish! Yes he fought and he survived to loot this country! What about my own father who got killed infront line just to have me live a decent life, which Kiir failed me, isn’t he a hero. Stop telling me fucken Kiir’s video footages

what is the problem why did people subjected themselves to generalisational wars? simply because there is a job that need to be done and everyone, everybody ,anybody, someone need to do it, some of whom whose administrative systematic could not even administer the kitchen area leave a lone a household! What a mess? this is an absolute Blatant violation,& disrespectful of the nation itself!!!!!!

If Dau Aturjong have support within the SPLA forces,why had he deserted and declared loyalty to rebel in Nairobi and not in division six.Dau is one of the generals who looted SPLA food and money.No single SPLA soldier will follow thugs who never pulled trigger during the war of liberation.Dau did not shoot a single bullet against Jallaba during the war,they use to command from remote.

South Sudanese will never listen to their looters.The real liberators are all behind the historical leadership.Kiir will rule for life and any thug who does not like it must leave South Sudan or else face defeat by any means.People of South Sudan have confidence in Kiir for Kiir releases the ouil money to the people only to be intercepted in the middle and misused.

You can’t honestly think that one man should exercise unfettered power, for life. Do you want a king!? This is not what people in South Sudan fought, bled and died for! We didn’t endure decades of war and famine to install a king — only answerable to himself. Our people will not tolerate a dictatorship.

Those who rebelled against the current government knows how best it is to work with the government and what you can get from it, that is why it is bad for President Kiir to remove the person and be ready to give chance to others who did not at all with the govt, so the best way to remove them is by killing them otherwise, what do they want, imagine of Deng Alor who served in GONU,GOSS and ROSS

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